Shauna Havey shows off her award-winning Mardi-Gras sandwich Monday, July 17, 2017, at her home in Roy. Havey recently placed third in the 2017 Grilled Cheese Academy Recipe Showdown, a national recipe contest hosted by Wisconsin Cheese.

SARAH WELLIVER/Standard-Examiner

This unique grilled cheese sandwich won 3rd place in a national recipe contest

MATILYN MORTENSEN
Standard-Examiner Staff

Posted: 7:00 am, Jul 20th, 2017

ROY — It’s exciting, but not surprising that Roy resident Shauna Havey has placed in another national recipe contest.

When Havey develops recipes for a contest, she said she focuses on creating a dish that has never been done before, or at least putting a twist on something classic. She also focuses on making sure the recipe isn’t too difficult.

“Companies really want to feature recipes that they think their customers will actually try and make,” Havey said.

To gain inspiration for her recipes, Havey looks through the past winners and decides what kind of dish is missing from the collection. This strategy helped her develop her prize winning grilled cheese sandwich, a Muffuletta inspired sandwich she named the Mardi-Gras.

“They didn’t have anything close to a Muffuletta style sandwich, yet it is a very popular sandwich and it’s something that is easy to make,” Havey said.

A Muffuletta is a classic New Orleans sandwich. Traditionally, it is made on round, Muffuletta loaf, which is an Italian bread with sesame seeds. In addition to various cold cuts and cheese, the sandwich also features an olive salad.

Havey made her version of the sandwich on ciabatta bread and kept it classic with her meat and cheese choices and the olive salad. To add her own twist, she created a mascarpone herb spread and deep fried the oregano she put on the sandwich.

Although Havey felt she took a gamble with using ciabatta rather than traditional white bread for her sandwich, she feels that paid off in the end.

“I think that is actually one of the reasons why (my sandwich) came out in the top three,” Havey said.

If you are interested in trying out Havey’s sandwich for yourself, here is the recipe.

Shauna Havey shows off her award-winning Mardi-Gras sandwich Monday, July 17, 2017, at her home in Roy. Havey recently placed third in the 2017 Grilled Cheese Academy Recipe Showdown, a national recipe contest hosted by Wisconsin Cheese.

Place mascarpone, 1 1/2 cups of the mozzarella, oregano, lemon juice, hot chili sauce, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and pepper into a food processor. Pulse a few times to combine, but do not puree. Set aside.

Heat grill pan to medium-high. Spread 1 tablespoon of cheese spread onto the bottom of each ciabatta roll and top with 2 slices of provolone. Place bottom buns on grill pan for 1-2 minutes to melt the cheese. Remove bottom buns from grill and place on a sheet pan. Top with 2 slices of mortadella, 4 slices of ham and 2 more slices of provolone. Place sandwiches under the broiler for 2 minutes until cheese melts. Remove from oven.

Place 1/4 of the olive salad onto each sandwich, top with salami and the remaining 1/4 cup of mozzarella. Return sandwiches to broiler for 2 minutes.

Spread remaining cheese spread onto the insides of the top ciabatta buns. Sprinkle fried oregano on top of the sandwiches before setting the top bun in place. Grill sandwiches on medium-high heat for 2-4 minutes per side until cheese is melted. Remove from grill and serve hot.